Basket ball rebound ring



y 1955 J. VERKUILEN 2,708,576

BASKET BALL REBOUND RING Filed Sept. 29, 1952 Unite States Patent 2,708,576 BASKET BALL REBOUND RING John Verkuilen, Denmark, Wis. Application September 29, 1952, Serial No. 312,140 3 Claims. (Cl. 273-15) My invention is directed to a novel basket ball rebound ring of reduced size adapted to be easily mounted or dismounted on a standard basket ball ring.

It is an object of my invention to provide an easily attachable and detachable rebound ring of a size smaller than a standard basket ball goal ring, and which has manually operable means for quickly removably mounting it on a standard basket ball ring, and which is adapted for use principally during practice of basket ball to improve the throw accuracy of the players.

A further object and accomplishment of my invention is the provision of a basket ball rebound ring having radial arms and clamping means thereon to facilitate the easy mounting and dismounting thereof, preferably in a plane above the plane of the standard goal ring, and which is durable and rigid in construction and efficient in use and inexpensive to manufacture.

Another and further object of my invention will be apparent from the following description and appended claims.

On the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of my novel rebound ring shown as mounted on a standard goal ring.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged partially cross sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged cross section taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

As shown on the drawings:

Numeral designates a metal standard basket ball goal ring of standard size which is mounted in a horizontal plane and connected to a back stop 11 by means of a suitable angular bracket 12 and bolts 13 which is secured by welding or the like to the periphery of said ring 10. Suitable side braces (not shown) extending from the two side edges of the ring to a of the backstop are usually provided to impart rigidity to said ring 10.

My novel rebound ring comprises a metal ring 14 of a size substantially smaller than goal ring 10, though slightly larger in circumference than a standard basket ball. Said ring carries and has connected to its periphery, a plurality preferably three, of radially extending metal arms or legs 15, 16 and 17 respectively, these being substantially 120 degrees apart, Each of the two legs and 16 have their ends bifurcated to form an end-opening recess 18 of a size sufficient to receive, preferably with a snug fit, the ring 10, as illustrated in Fig. 4. Said legs are inclined slightly downwardly so that the bifurcated ends of said legs will normally lie in a plane below the plane of ring 14 and so that rebound ring 14, when mounted, will be maintained in a plane a short distance above the plane of goal ring 10.

Referring to Fig. 3, the end of the leg 17 is bifurcated to provide a downwardly opening slot or recess partially defined by integral extension ears or lugs 19 and 20, which partially envelop the ring 10 when in mounted position. The inner face of lug 19 is on a plane substantially perlower portion 2,708,576 Patented May 17, 1955 pendicular to the planes of rings 10 and 14 so that in mounting the ring, the two legs 15 and 16 are first pushed into position wherein the goal ring 10 will be seated in recess 18 and the rebound ring will then be lowered to cause the goal ring to seat in the recess between lugs 19 and 20. Lug or ear 19 has a threaded aperture therein formed in an upwardly inclined direction, as illustrated in Fig. 3. a

A thumb screw 21 is threaded in the aperture of ear or lug 19 as shown so that the end will engage and press against'the rounded face of ring 10 slightly-below the horizontal central plane of said ring. It will be understood that in mounting the ring, the screw 21 is first partially retracted so its end is within lug 19; the bifurcated ends of the legs 15 and 16 of the rebound ring are seated about ring 10, and thereupon the bifurcated end of leg 17 is seated to a position shown in Fig. 3. Thereupon screw 21 is tightened inwardly to releasably lock and mount the rebound ring rigidly and concentrically with respect to goal ring 10 and in a horizontal plane slightly above the ring 10. Said screw 21, when tightened as aforesaid, prevents vibration and rattle when rebound ring 14 is struck by a ball.

When it is desired to remove the rebound ring, usually after practice sessions, the screw 21 is loosened and retracted and the rebound ring raised at the side adjacent leg 17 and it is then withdrawn to disengage legs 15 and 16 from goal ring 10.

It will be understood that use of my novel rebound ring is advantageous in practice and training of basket ball in that a substantially greater degree of accuracy of throwing of the ball is required in order to cause it to fall through such rebound ring, this resulting in more concentrated and careful effort on the part of the players. Another advantage is that my aforesaid construction of the downwardly and outwardly inclined legs or arms which support the rebound ring a short distance above the plane of the goal ring produces a mounting which is just as rigid and unyielding to the impacts of the ball as the mounted goal ring itself and no give or flexing of the ring upon impact is possible.

As many changes could be made in the above construction, and as many apparently widely different embodiments of my invention within the scope of the claims could be constructed without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the accompanying specification shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

1. A practice device for basketball goals comprising an annular rebound ring of a size smaller than a standard goal ring; a plurality of outwardly and downwardly inclined legs integral with said rebound ring; said legs having their end portions bifurcated, said bifurcated end portions being vertically disposed to form downwardly and outwardly opening recesses adapted to sit on said goal ring; one bifurcated end portion extending vertically downward to permit removal of the device from said goal ring; a threaded passage extending through said bifurcated end portion in alignment with the inner surface of said goal ring; and a manually operable screw threaded in said passage to engage a portion of the inner face of said goal ring to normally press the bifurcated portions of the other of said legs against said goal ring and removably secure said practice device on said goal ring.

2. A rebound ring for basket ball goals, comprising an annular rebound ring of a size smaller than a standard goal ring, a plurality of outwardly and downwardly inclined legs, integral with said rebound ring, said legs having their end portions enlarged and bifurcated; said bifurcated end portions being adapted to removably seat in said goal; one of said leg end portions having a recess opening downwardly and outwardly and having a threaded passage extending from the inner face thereof; a manually operable screw threaded in said threaded passage of one of said leg end portions; said screw being adapted to engage a portion of the inner face of said goal ring to normally press the bifurcated portion of the other of said legs against a goal ring and removably mount said rebound ring on a goal ring.

3. A rebound ring for basket ball goals comprising an annular rebound ring of a size smaller than a standard goal ring; a plurality of radially and outwardly and downwardly inclined mounting arms on said rebound ring; said arms having their ends bifurcated and recessed and adapted to removably seat on said goal ring and adapted to support said rebound ring in a plane above said goal ring; one of said arms having a threaded passage therein; and a manually operable screw threaded in said passage ofone of said bifurcated portions of said arms, and normally disposed in a downwardly inclined direction whereby the end of said screw will engage a portion of the under face of said goal to thereby, impinge said rebound ring concentric with respect to said goal ring.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Peoples Hayden 

